The US Navy has successfully used a revolutionary ship-mounted laser weapon to shoot down four drones, according to a new report.
The latest trial involved the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Preble, equipped with Lockheed Martin’s High-Energy Laser with Integrated Optical Dazzler and Surveillance (HELIOS) system.
Lockheed Martin’s Chief Executive, Jim Taiclet, said the shipboard laser was used to knock a drone ‘right out of the sky’ during a quarterly earnings call last week.
‘The HELIOS weapon system successfully neutralised four drone threats in a U.S. Navy-operated counter-UAS (uncrewed aerial systems) demonstration at sea, showcasing an opportunity to eliminate drone attacks using lasers, and saving U.S. and allied air defence missiles for more advanced threats,’ he added.
The news comes as the US Navy’s most senior officer said he wants directed energy weapons to become the preferred option for crews defending warships against close-range threats.
Britain and Germany have also been trialling similar systems, which could change how soldiers address drone threats.
The HELIOS laser has been mounted on the bow of USS Preble since 2022 and is currently the only US Navy vessel to carry it.
Vice Admiral Brendan McLane said at the Surface Navy Association’s annual symposium in January: ‘The Surface Navy has a rare opportunity with leadership aligned on delivering lethality, capability, and capacity at speed.
‘As an enterprise, we must continue to think big as we develop the future platforms in the world.
‘We must lay the foundations for the systems on those ships now so that they deliver on their promise to the American people.’
HELIOS is a 60-kilowatt-class directed energy weapon designed to destroy or damage targets such as drones or small boats.
It can also be used as a so-called ‘dazzler’, intended to disrupt or blind optical sensors.
Lockheed Martin has previously said the system could potentially be scaled up to 150 kilowatts.
Defending against multiple drones at once has become a growing concern for navies, particularly following recent operations in and around the Red Sea.
Large-scale drone attacks, especially when combined with threats such as cruise or ballistic missiles, risk overwhelming traditional air defence systems.
A British warship in the Red Sea previously shot down a suspected drone attack, which was aimed at a merchant ship in the region.
Cargo ships in waters off the Arabian Peninsula were the subject of drone attacks from nearby territory held by Houthi rebels in Yemen in 2023.
The British defensive move came after the Bahamas-flagged Unity Explorer, owned by a UK company, was among three commercial vessels targeted in an attack by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.
